Court: Gun boards can use juvenile offenses to reject permits

The state Court of Appeals says a county concealed gun board did not exceed its authority when it denied a permit based on a man’s juvenile crime record.

Jameel Stephens says the Wayne County Concealed Weapons Board should not have rejected his request for a concealed pistol permit, because he was found guilty as a juvenile of breaking and entering.

Stephens argued that juvenile proceedings are supposed to be shielded from that sort of decision-making. He says they are also not, officially, criminal convictions.

Michigan is what’s called a “shall-issue” concealed gun state. That means gun boards must approve permit requests unless there is a clear reason to deny a person.

The Court of Appeals says state law clearly allows gun boards to deny concealed pistol permits to people found guilty of a juvenile offense – if that offense is a felony when an adult is charged. That would include breaking and entering.